The limiter switch on my 400 DO has two positions, 3.5 and 8 meters. I was inside the 8 meter limit. Usually, these birds are pretty shy but the location where I found this one is man-made lake in a public park on Tucson, Arizona's west side. Periodically, the lake is stocked with fish and that attracts both wading birds and fishermen. They coexist amicably, the fishermen don't bother the birds and the birds get very used to people. So, it's an ideal place to photograph ducks and wading birds, including Great Blue Herons, Great Egrets, Black Crowned Night Herons, and Neotropic Cormorants.

The black-crowned night heron (Nycticorax nycticorax), commonly abbreviated to just night heron in Eurasia, is a medium-sized heron found throughout a large part of the world, except in the coldest regions and Australasia (where it is replaced by the closely related rufous night heron, with which it has hybridized in the area of contact).

Dolina, as a fan of your work I hope one day you'd share with us how you go about getting your shots. One thing I do know is you don't go camo in order to avoid getting shot Here in Taiwan, though, it's something of a fashion statement for hardcore bird photogs to wear full or semi-camo. Anyway, please keep posting!

Dolina, as a fan of your work I hope one day you'd share with us how you go about getting your shots. One thing I do know is you don't go camo in order to avoid getting shot Here in Taiwan, though, it's something of a fashion statement for hardcore bird photogs to wear full or semi-camo. Anyway, please keep posting!

Hank thank you!

If you want to stay in one piece you do not use camo while in the Philippines. I can explain it to you fully but I'd probably offend one set of people or another.

What is important to keep in mind are the basics. These are namely food, water and shelter. If you figure that out then you're set.

Knowing animal behaviour is key as well. Like people they are creatures of habit and have routines.

Practice, practice and more practice. If you have a background as a hunter or poacher then you're a far better birder than I will ever be. I used to go birding every week when I first started but recently I only go birding once a month if I am lucky.

Having a network of birding friends helps whether they be bird watchers or bird photographers. Being a member of a birding org helps but it isn't a prerequisite.

A lot of foreign birders find Philippine birds the most challenging to enjoy the hobby/sport. Through hard learned experience Philippine birds know to avoid Filipinos as my countrymen often have no source of livelihood but to hunt and eat the birds or else go hungry, poach the birds for pet collectors and traditional medicines. Habitat loss due to illegal loggers who just clear cut tropical rainforest to try to satisfy the demand for fresh lumber.

In a nutshell the Philippine birds are doomed to be only found in zoos, museums or in my photos.

Little guys in a tree in the Tiger Preserve in Peryar (Southern India). Taken with a 5diii, 200mm, 1/50, f/7.1, iso 5000. Don't know what they were (species) but it looked pretty cool. This is a crop form a larger image.

Little guys in a tree in the Tiger Preserve in Peryar (Southern India). Taken with a 5diii, 200mm, 1/50, f/7.1, iso 5000. Don't know what they were (species) but it looked pretty cool. This is a crop form a larger image.

I believe these are young Caprimulgus/nightjars. In Norway we call them Night Ravens. Very cool birds and a very cool image!